BILL ANALYSIS C.S.H.B. 1878 By: Solomons 5-1-95 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND The number of civil cases where one party has requested a jury trial has increased over the past several years. Consequently, counties are paying more each year in empaneling juries. Since 1987 counties with a population of two million or more have been permitted to collect jury fees on civil cases requesting a jury trial in district court, county court or statutory county court. PURPOSE This bill would allow all counties to assess the $20 (district court) and $17 (county court and statutory county court) jury fees on all civil cases requesting a jury trial. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency or institution. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Section 51.064, Civil Practices and Remedies Code, as follows: Deletes existing Subsection (a) providing only counties with a population of two million or more the ability to collect a jury fee on civil court cases. Renumbers remaining subsections accordingly. (d) Collection of jury fees permitted by this section does not apply to a party that has filed an affidavit of inability to pay under Rule 145, Texas Rules of Civil Procedure. SECTION 2. Effective date - September 1, 1995. Applies to actions that commence on or after the effective date of the Act. SECTION 3. Emergency clause. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE The caption of the original bill is changed from "relating to costs of empaneling a jury" to "relating to the collection of fee for jury trial" in the substitute. The substitute deals with Sect. 51.064, Civil Practices and Remedies Code, rather than Chapter 30, Civil Practices and Remedies Code, as in original. The original intent of the bill was to make parties requesting a civil jury trial pay the cost of empaneling a jury. The substitute allows all counties to collect a $20 jury fee for each civil case seeking a jury trial in district court and a $17 jury fee for each civil case seeking a jury trial in the county court or statutory county court. The substitute bill continues to specifically provide for waiver of the jury fee for a party that has filed an affidavit of inability to pay under Rule 145, Texas Rules of Civil Procedure. SUMMARY OF COMMITTEE ACTION H.B. 1878 was considered by the Civil Practices Commission in a public hearing on March 22, 1995. The following people testified in support of the bill: Jim Allison, representing the County Judges and Commissioners Association of Texas; and Donald Lee, representing the Conference of Urban Cities. No one testified in opposition to or neutrally on the bill. The bill was referred to a subcommittee consisting of Representatives Tillery (chair), Culberson, and Sadler. The subcommittee considered a complete substitute for the bill. The substitute was adopted without objection. The bill was reported favorably, as substituted, to the full committee by a record vote of three ayes, zero nays, zero pnv and zero absent. H.B. 1878 was considered on subcommittee report by the committee in a public hearing on April 26, 1995. The substitute was adopted without objection. The bill was reported favorably, as substituted, with the recommendation that it do pass and be printed, by a record vote of five ayes, zero nays, zero pnv and four absent.